Balanced yoke drive for locomotives



Filed March '7, 1931 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR fz'wz Wheeler.

AToRNEY BALANCED YOKE DRIVE FOR LOCOMOTIVES Filed March '7, 1931 2Sheets-Sheet 2 F'z'g; WITNESSES: INVENTOR Erm?? Wheeler f/ 'l /n l my Uf.'L v My'iinventionlrelates' to locomotives and moref particularly"- toconnections Afor transmitting Patented Oct. 10, 1933 'af-'motor-drivenquill Qshaft to' a -srivingjwheel axle-Shaft. v a 1 1,.

"A-*lffol' specific einem:- of my'lmventipn vis toprovide/Tor?trarisnittingftorque from one rotatively'mountedrnembe. totanother in suchma'nner`2'tl1'at'l the rotativelymounted member'sf' havelimited universal-movement with respect toeach vide "for 'sotransmitting torquev from one 1rota' tivelyj'mounted-member to anotherlthatsubstantially no 'unbalanced centrifugal forces are transmittedtothe rotatively mountedfmember's' when L*they are being rotated eitherabout thesame or about different axes.

Another objectof 'rny'invention vis to provide la connectionfor apairvoflrotativelymounted y'-`r'r'1embe'r`s"that permitsuniversal-relative movement 'of the rotatively mounted members-land-forl so transmitting torque from one of the-rotatiyely' mountedvmembers to the Y'other that any sudden change in torque, caused by oneof the rotativelyA mounted members, is gradually absorbed by-thearrangement ofparts which will be exemplified in the constructionhereinafter set forth and the scope of the application of which will beindicated in the claims.

For a fuller understanding of the objects of the invention, referenceshould be had to the following detailed description, taken in connectionfwith; the accompanying drawings, in which;

Figura-1 is a view, in side elevation, of a motor-driven gear wheeland adriving wheel of a locomotive `embodying the features of my invention,parts being broken away to show the arrangement `of the structuralelements of a uni- 'driven gear .means of a bearing 11. shaft thatextends beyond the bearing 11 is se- Loco i to the motordrivenfgearwheel. 1 A

section line' .11411 pf .Fig A. A

"the features of my invention, taken alongthe Y of amo'toridriven-gear-.wheel'of a'qlocomotive ill -lustrating al resilientmeans for mounting the uni- '--versal connection shown-inl Fig. 1 'to'the motor- 'driven gear-wheel." I -Y Fig.' 4 'is a viWof-:a' connectionthat isutilized for rotatively- -connecting av yoke to `a"drivingWheel'of IOCOm'fl/etakn along the fsection v'line III-IH of Fig. 1,

. Fig."5 isa-- perspective viewvof A the universal.' ;fconnection shownin Figjlfutilized yfor mounting v a yoke upon -a'jmotor-Vdriven gearwheel ofA a locomotive. u Fig/ is a view; infront elevation, of 'a yokemade inf-accordancewith-'l my.''invention and utilizedfor'"transmittingtorque from -a motorwheel upon'a driving wheel of aloco' m0tiVe Fig.'.7 s'aview,partly in side elevation and partly insection, ofthe yoke, the section being taken along the line VII-VII ofFig. 6.

Fig. 8 is aview, in fcross'section, showing the web structure of theyoke, taken along the line Fig. 9 isa view, incross section, showing theweb structure of the yoke; taken along the line IX-IX of FigLG; J Lv Myinvention, although capable of general application; is-particularlyapplicable for transmitting -torque 'from a motor-driven-quill shaft `of a locomotiveto a driving-wheel axle.

Since the construction and operation of the motor-driven quill shaft andthe driving wheel" axle are well known -to those skilled in the art,

only a showing of the essential members is included in the accompanyingdrawings.

Referring now to Fig. 2 of the drawing, 10

designates an end portion of a quill shaft journalled to thesuper-structure of a locomotive by On the end of the quill curelymounted a motor-driven gear wheel 12.

The wheel axle 15, of which only an end portion is Shown in Fig. 2,extends through, -andvis mounted to have relative movement within, thequill shaft 10. The ends of the wheel axle 15 are rotatively mounted inaxle journal bearing 16, of which only one is shown.

It will be observed in Fig. 2 that the relative longitudinal movement ofthe wheel axle 15 within the quill shaft 10 is limited in one directionby the wheel hub 17 making contact with the bearing l1, and limited inthe other direction by the wheel hub 17 making contact with the axlejournal bearingl,

However,y itlisf hee 'l be permittdtoh/e soi'fie longitudinal eltmovement within the quill shaft, in order-t0 prevent the imposing of anexcessive upon the flanges of the driving wheels when the' locomotive ismoving on a trackzlal ive 18, so that, when the trunnions 2l and 22 aremounted upon the wheel 18, the axes thereof coincide with the diameterof the wheel. In other words, the axis, about which the yoke 20 rotateswithin the split bearings 25, perpendicularly intersects the axis aboutwhich the wheel 18 rotates.

As shown in Fig. 4, the base portions 19 of the split bearings 25 areformed integral with the spokes of the driving wheel 18. The caps 31.vIeobserved that'thbse portions lrandrthe cap portion 30 of the splitbearside thrust ings ,25 are provided with removable bearing `bushings33, and the trunnions 21 and 22 are jprov'ed' With'reino'vable bearingsleeves 34.

It is evident, since the super-structure of -Thes'lremovable bearingsare provided in order locomotive is resiliently supportedJ bysprings orother suitable means, upon theaxlejournal ings 16, that the wheelaxle'and' th qd" will rotate about diierent axes when the sp rings orare released. www,

In view of the fact that the quin shaft a thewheel @Xiarotate sometimesalieni-diligenteprevent trunnions-wand f22-V- from--movinef ,-,iaxiallywithin,-thefSplit-I bearings 25. As; shownbest in Fiatlathetrunnionf-bearine zendcaps; 36 are securely attachedtotheg{split}bearings :.25 by bolts? morder to form-a bearing surfacefOrthe-ends o ithertrunnions 121.-- and-2f4 Sin the trunniens. 2.1 and22er@ prevented-f rOmmowf axes, it is desirable thatttheconnectionutilized foraltransmttine imrque f-,fmm 'tha-,quille Shaft@ the wheel(axle beg-both.- dynamically 1-5x55 I.' 'JILL EZVLJ. In order to have atqrquertpansmittinggco nection that shallibe fsubetantiallyedynagcallyand statically balancedf-#af-symmetrically.formedyoke 20 havingvv.twotrunnions- 2.1..; 22fand-:tw0 f arms .-23 ,and Z4-formed; thereon-s.pipi/titled.A preferably shown in Fig. 7, the center if-gravity ofthefyoke lies-uponrtharaxiseoethe-xtrurmionsrf However, noseriousgesultswilloccur ifjfthefcenter of 1 gravity 0f the yoke-is notoupon f1 the axis of the trunnions. 1 1.;7-1; fj-

The-trunnions 21 and 22e-project radially :out'i ward fromthefyoke-20andare disposeddialnet-ff; rically opposite toeach-,otherfsmthat they mayvolves, is small, it is necessary vtososhape2the webof the yoke shown;in. Figs.- 8 and 9,- as toj'f providethe necessaryclearance. @Asis-observed.- in Figs. 8 and 9, the crosssection of:.the'web -'of the yoke 20, taken-along the-lineVIII-JLIII;is'y smaller than the crosssectionwtakenfalongwthel; line IX'1Xbecause'thatpart of -theyoketaken along the line isffarther away from--the axes of the-trunnions 2l-and22-,thanlf that journal-bearingpedestal, thatfpartfof the -yokez that-describes-the;longest arc, asthe,-yoke-;rotates about thetaxes.ofztheftrunnions 21v and the smallestin cross section. f A l.

The trunnions 2 1 and 2 2, of .the yokeare-,rotatively mounted-upontheydrivingwheel .18 by utilizing split bearings 25. Thesp1itbearings-25are diametrically disposed vabout the drivingv Wheel andstatically fstantially, dynamically and statically balanced,

`tunnio-bearing end caps 36 are provided to :fingaxially the :split,bearings 25, the centerstantially upon the axis about which the Wheelipermitted tom ove ,axially within `the split-bean; l

wings 25.

However, if the trunnionszl .andgzg ofthe, be rotatively connected tothe driving Wheel'iilnayokegpwerepermitted,to move axially within Thearms 23and:24;'pt0jt-=perpenddll1arlx frQmf-l the splitbearing- 25, the-yoke 2() wouldy become :dynamically-and statically unbalanced because-"Fthe center ofi-gravity of the yoke 20 would be; xshifted-,away-frcmthe; axes about which the..

l would-cause.not onlyA highinternalstresses in driving partsofthezlocornotive but-also cause the eiciency of the torque-transmittingconnection to bereduced, because part of the energy,

instead of being utilized in transmitting torque Lto the drivingwheel-18, would be dissipated in l overcoming the energy caused byfrictionalforces "incident to reciprocating the trunnions.21 and i522 ofthe heavy yoke 20 within the split bearings'25.

Inl order'that v the ,split bearings 25 may be `:sufficientlylubricated, suitable fittings 38 are provided. It will be observed inFig. 2 that the 1 The arms 23 and 24 of the yoke 20 are connected -tothe motor-driven gear wheel 12, in

such manner thatv the connection shown'in Fig.

y1- provides universal' movement between the 22, relative-t0 -thefplaneOff'th-Wheel-l,-lS'madQ-f motor-driveniquill shaft 10 and the wheel axle15, except angularly in the direction that-the torque is beingtransmitted.-

Referring to Fig. 5, which shows a perspective "View of the universalconnection, 24 represents 4une of the arms ofthe yoke-20. The arm 24 isV"1 cureiy attached 'frpninertioek'as'gei '-=af'cmfieptionfffrfsotransmitting-morfine. Afrom fonefrratveiy fmtutedmember to' another that 'substantially-fno unbalanced centrifugal forcesare order'ito'permit- 'relativel lon'gitudinalmvfem'ert The block 45 isrotatively and slidably mounted within the shoes 42 and 43, in order topermit the motor-driven quill shaft and the wheel axle to rotate aboutthe same axis or different parallel axes. Also, by virtue of the fact"fthat the shoes 42 and 43 are rotatively mounted in wearing plates 40and 41, the motor-driven shaft 10 and the wheel axle 15 are permitted torotate about the same axis or about diierent axes, whether they areparallel or not. Therefore, it has been noted that the universalconnection permits the motor-driven quill shaft 10 and the Wheel axle 15to move relative to each other lin all directions, except angularly inthe direction that the torque is being transmitted.

ivi'ri Likewise, the arms 23 and 24 of the yoke are provided with sleevebearings 46, in order that the worn bearings may be replaced by new onesinstead of replacing a worn yoke by a new one.

In some classes of locomotive service, it is defsirable to have thetorque-transmitting connection resiliently connected to the motor-drivenquill shaft, in order to minimize high stresses of the driving parts. Inview of this fact, as shown in Fig. 3, the wearing plates 40 and 41 tofthe universal connection are resiliently mounted upon the motor-drivengear wheel by utilizing suitable resilient means 56, such as springs,micarta blocks or other materials.

In order that a lubricant may be conveniently supplied to the universalconnection, ducts 50,

having suitable connections 5l are provided. Since some of the lubricantis liable to be wasted by centrifugal force, boots 57, as shown in Fig.2, are provided. 'I'he boots 57 are connected to @the motor-driven gearwheel 12 to extend outwardly to surround the shoulders of the arms 23and 24 of the yoke 20.

As shown in Fig. 2, an opening in the web of the motor-driven gear wheel12, having a S'screw cap 53, is provided in order to facilitate theassembling of the arms 23 and 24 with the universal connection of themotor-driven gear wheel 12.

In operation, when the motor-driven quill shaft '"ard the wheel axle arebeing rotated about the same axis, the yoke will assume such positionthat its plane will be parallel to the plane of rotation of the wheelaxle. It is to be noted that when the loke is revolving in thisposition, "it" is dynamically balanced for its center of gravity lies atall times upon the axis about which the motor-driven quill shaft and theWheel axle are rotating.

However, when the motor-driven quill shaft and .Wheel axle are beingrotated about different axes, the yoke will so move within the splitbearings 25 that its plane will oscillate with respect to the plane ofrotation of the wheel 18. In this position, if the center of gravity ofthe yoke 20is not upon the axis of the trunnions 21 and 22 the yokewill, at times, be slightly unbalanced dynamically because its center ofgravity will, at certain intervals during the rotation, be displacedfrom the axis about which the wheel axle isl rotating.

practical embodiment of my invention, I do not limit myself strictly tothe exact details herein illustrated, since they may be considerablyvaried without departing from the spirit of the invention, as defined inthe appended claims,

I claim as my invention:

1. A torque transmitting connection comprising a rotatable member havinga yoke rotatably supported thereon with the axis of rotation of the yokeextending transversely of the rotatable member, a second rotatablemember having two universal connections mounted thereon, and armsinterconnecting the said yoke and the said universal connections, eachof said universal connections including two rotatable elements havingarcuate ends and a slidable and rotatable block mounted between the twoarcuate ends, the said blocks being connected to the said arms.

2. A torque transmitting connection comprising a rotatable member havinga yoke rotatably supported thereon with the axis of rotation of the yokeextending transversely of the rotatable member, said yoking beingconstrained from moving longitudinally of its axis, a second rotatablemember having two universal connections mounted thereon, and armsinterconnecting the said yoke and the said universal connections, eachof said universal connections including two rotatable elements havingarcuate ends and a slidable and rotatable block mounted between the twoarcuate ends, the said blocks being connected to the said arms.

3. A torque transmitting connection comprising a rotatable member havinga yoke rotatably supported thereon with the axis of rotation of the yokeextending transversely of the rotatable member, a second rotatablemember having two 1 universal connections resiliently mounted thereon,and arms interconnecting the said yoke and the said universalconnections, each of said universal connections including two rotatableelements having arcuate ends and a slidable and ro- 1 tatable blockmounted between the two arcuate ends, the said blocks being connected tothe said arms.

4. A torque transmitting connection comprising two rotatable members, ayoke having two 130 "'1'5 radially extending trunnions and two outwardlyextending arms, means for rotatably supporting the trunnions upon one ofthe rotatable memberswith the axis of rotation of the trunnionsextending transversely of the said rotatable member, two universalconnections mounted upon the other of said rotatable member andconnected to the outwardly extending arms, each of said universalconnections including two rotatable elements having arcuate ends and aslidable and rotatable block mounted between the two arcuate ends, thesaid blocks being connected to the out- Wardly extending arms.

5. A torque transmitting connection comprising a rotatable member havinga yoke rotatably supported thereon withthe axis of rotation of the yokeextending transversely of the rotatable member, two outwardly extendingarms connected to the yoke, a block connected to each arm, and a secondrotatable member having means marsans-arrastraba:fxampe constitute-sla.

thereon, said means-including roi', Mablej elements-seond5rotgablemembet having-meanslfor-r-.sld

having arcuate. ends for engaging; fthe Said..;b,1ck& fablyand rotatablymountinglthemlpoks;thereOm-f-f n 6. A torque transmjtigg--connectgnvcormprisf zfsaiimeansrincluding; rotatablegglementshaving; s'fingrotatable-member having awoke rotatably. arcuateends .-;f01r' .ngagingthe-,;$adb1Qc1. S, and-80 Supported ivthereon Withfthe Ms` offrotaftioneof means fqnrsientlyfmounng- 1211@ mtatablefele the yokeextending transversely of'fghey rotatable,ments'upqnfthesecondrgtatiafble memlge1; .g,- f membentwooutwardlyextending-armsconneqted -YWHEELER.

